Finding New Worlds
by xxEagle07xx
Summary: ERAGON CROSSOVER: Arya's Dragon-Riding twin sister Anya is accidentally zapped into the world of Araluen along with 2 more dragon eggs. What does that mean for this once peaceful land and our heroes? Read and find out.
1. The Beginning

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything from Ranger's Apprentice nor Eragon

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><p>"<em>There will come a time when you will have to make the hardest decision of your life. Not only will this decision affect all of Alegasia and the beings that inhabit this land, but will also affect a land not yet seen to our eyes." Oromis told Anya. "I am sorry that such a hard task falls on the shoulders of one so young but that is the order in which we live."Anya nodded her head and looked off into the distance at a large golden shape chasing a smaller green shape through the air. <em>

"_And what is to become of Verdos?" Anya felt she had to ask as she watched her green dragon blow smoke at Glaedr._

"_That I cannot tell you." Oromis said after a long pause. "I can only try to prepare you for what is to come the best way I see fit." _

_As if sensing Anya's mixed feelings and grief about the whole situation, Verdos came flying to her side. He was only 10 months old but already he was huge. Him and Glaedr landed with 2 huge tremors that shook the very earth and Verdos nudged Anya with his nose, softly and affectionately. She took the moment to stroke his nose and tried not to think about the millions of outcomes that could possibly be waiting in the future for them. _

"_Come. Let us retire for the hour is late." Once again, Anya just nodded and hopped on Verdos. _

"_I'll see you tomorrow, Master." Anya said before Verdos took off into the sky. His reply was lost to her. _

"You can no longer avoid the inevitable." Murtagh yelled across to Anya. "This was for-ordained long before you and me were even born."

"The future is constantly changing." She shouted back, feeling blood dripping from the open split on the left side of her mouth. "We can choose to change."

"You were one of the lucky." Murtagh sneered at her. "And the foolish Arya."

"I am not the one fighting on the wrong side." Anya chose that moment to spit on the ground in front of her and she saw the look of disdain on his face at those words.

"Who is to say what is right and what is wrong." He asked quietly.

"You cannot possibly approve of what he's doing to those dragons' souls." Anya whispered. If he told her that he did, then all the faith that she had in him would be shattered right here and now.

"I cannot say that I do agree." He finally told her after a second of silence.

"Please." Anya tried to beg one last time for now she knew that the cause was not lost. "We don't have to fight."

"I will always have to fight you. Until you come to our side, I will always have to fight you. I have no choice." Anya knew what he was speaking of and she had no way to counter it. She was beginning to lose all hope.

"But I think that that might be very soon." A cold voice said behind her. The blood seemed to freeze in her very veins and her entire body went cold, even Murtagh's face went pale.

"Galbatorix." She whispered. She couldn't believe it.

"Yes." He drawled. "You have been quite the rebellious one. Do you know how irritated I am?"

"I could care less with how irritated you are you murder." Anya anwered in a low, dangerous voice.

"I knew that you would eventually come to a face-off with Murtagh." He said, smiling. "I only had to bide my time until the moment arose."

Not quite getting his meaning, Anya looked to Murtagh who refused to look at her now. She had a horrible feeling that she already knew where this was going and her heart started to hurt every time she took a breath.

"Yes." Galbatorix laughed. "It was because of Murtagh that I knew where to find you and your dragon. And both of you will join me. If you refuse me, you will live out the remainder of your life alone."

"You bastard." She screamed at Murtagh. "I hate you."

"Now now." Galbatorix smiled, raising both hands. "Anya. I'm giving a free choice here. Join me and become all powerful, or live the rest of your life knowing that you condemned your dragon to death."

"Go to hell." This time Anya spat blood in the general direction of Galbatorix and tried to stand. Her left leg wasn't going to hold too much weight so she stood mostly on the right and raised her sword.

"So be it." Galbatorix spat back. "But you had a choice to avoid bloodshed here. Remember that when you have nothing in your head but your own thoughts."

Anya felt the pressure of his mind control on the outer limits of her mind and knew that she wasn't going to last long before he breached her defenses.

"You deserve nothing more than death." She screamed, closing her eyes and letting the last rays of hope to be lost to the infinite darkness. It would all be left to Eragon and Saphira now.

With one last spurt of her energy, she threw every last bit of her life force at Galbatorix and the last thing she remembered before bursting into flames was being happy that she didn't have to live alone without Verdos.

Then all she was aware of was pain and not being able to breathe. Her lungs were screaming for some sort of air, any air really. It felt like she was going to spontaneously combust any second… And then it was all over and she sucked sweet sweet air into her lungs.

But the mixture of air and smoke was too much and she began to wretch and throw up everything she had ever eaten in her entire life. It took her a while to calm down and when she finally looked around, she saw that she was in a forest. She was laying in the middle of a charred spot and there was even smoke coming from her clothes.

She did a quick body check to make sure that she was going to be o.k. and then did a quick weapon count as well. The 2 small blades that she always carried on her were still in the holster on her hip along with the sword and bow and arrows. She checked the smaller knife in her boots and was satisfied when it was there. At least she wasn't completely left to her own resources.

_I can't believe we made it out of that alive. _She laughed to herself but the laughter was cut short when there was no deep rumbling in an answer. She felt the beginning of panic and tried to reach out again but found nothing but her thoughts.

Anya had never felt so lonely in her entire life. It was like the silence of the whole world came crashing down on her in that moment and she screamed. She screamed as loud as her voice would go but the sound was lost to her ears because she was truly alone.

She laid there and cried, wishing that she could just continue to lay there until she decomposed into the earth. After what felt like hours and the sun was beginning to poke through the trees directly above her, she sat up and tried to form her thoughts about what she was going to do.

She got up to brush her pants off when something white caught her eye. She looked and for a second she couldn't bring her thoughts to believe what she was seeing. It was absolutely impossible.. And yet, here was a dragons egg, white as the clouds that were floating in the sky. She picked it up and felt the heat resonating from it already and Anya couldn't help the tears that were coming to her eyes as she remembered what it felt like when she had first held Verdos' egg in her hands. She pulled off her cloak and was starting to carefully wrap it up when another odd color caught her eye. On the other side of the clearing, there was another orange dragon egg.

How could this even be possible? Saphira was the last dragon egg. Wasn't she? Non-the-less Anya kneeled down and picked up the egg and wrapped it carefully with the other one. She had to get out of the Spine and get the eggs to Oromis as fast as she could. He would know what to do with them. There was absolutely no time to waste. And with a task set in mind, the aloneness faded a small amount.

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><p><strong>AN: **Like many of my stories, this just came into my head the other day so I'm just going with it. Not really sure how far this is going to go so if you have suggestions feel free to send em my way. Well hope you enjoy and don't forget to review =)


	2. In The Waking Hours

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything from Ranger's Apprentice nor Eragon.

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><p>Will awoke in a cold sweat. He had bolted upright and couldn't remember if he was screaming in his dream or in real life. In his dream, there had been a huge battle taking place. Unlike all his other battle related nightmares where he saw men that he had personally taken lives from, this was one battle he had never seen before.<p>

Horace was there but there were many other people there also and as he sunk back down into the warmness of his blankets and he closed his eyes, he tried to think about the cause that they were fighting for and had a feeling in the pit of his stomach that if they didn't win that battle all was going to be lost.

He closed his eyes tighter and remembered there being a monster the size of a house that blew fire. What initially had awoken him in the first place was the feeling of falling through open space. As he laid there and tried to think about the dream more, it seemed like the details were fading. Like they were there but he just couldn't place them together correctly.

He shook off the thoughts and climbed out of his bed to put a pot of coffee on. As soon as it was done, he added some sugar and of course a generous helping of honey and went to stand outside on his porch, shirtless.

In the East, the sun wasn't even fully up yet and Will stood there admiring the hughes of pink and purple before that first Ray of sun broke out over the horizon. Will loved this moment of the day more then any other and after taking a sip of his hot coffee, he closed his eyes and let his surroundings fill his thoughts. He took in the sound of the birds chirping and a woodpecker pecking at a tree. He heard the sound of the leaves rustle together as close trees brushed against each other and Will smiled.

_Better get moving. _He thought to himself. _No way Halt will let me go early today if I don't get a good head start on the day's work._ And, draining his cup of coffee he went into the small cottage at the edge of the woods that was now his and started getting ready for the day, the dream he had that morning all but forgotten.

Little did he know, hundreds of miles to the Northeast of Redmont, the very same thing was happening to his close friend Horace. As did Will, Horace awoke with a jolt and was also in a cold sweat.

_What was that?_ He asked himself, rubbing his ribcage on the left side. Unlike Will, Horace was awoken by the short spasm of pain that shot up his left side after something the size of a tree hit him. He had heard a momentary roar of agony that was almost in sync with his cry of pain and then the next thing he knew, he was here in his bed back in the castle.

He sat up and rubbed his eyes, the first light of the predawn was just creeping over the horizon and he groaned internally. He could've used these extra hours of sleep but now that he was awake, he was going to stay awake.

He walked to the window and when his feet hit the cold stone floor under his feet, he shuddered. There was something about that dream that he couldn't quite put his finger on. He had known that Will was there completely out of instinct but something else was bugging him too. As he thought about the dream images flicked across his mind like a movie playing without sound.

He saw a girl, no older then him and Will, running towards him with Will in tow and he knew that it was time. But time for what? He knew that it was important but try as he might, he couldn't put his finger on it.

He decided he would think about it later and decided he needed something to eat before his long journey today. So, pushing the thoughts away, he headed down to the kitchen smiling at the thought of scrambled eggs with toast and fruit.

Anya, finally getting over the initial shock that she was o.k was now running in the direction of the sun and after a fair amount of time she finally came out of the Spine. She looked around and tried to find her bearings but for some strange reason she didn't recognize anything around her. Was it possible that she had never been in this part of the woods before?

_Oh well._ She thought and pulled her long curly locks back and covered her ears with a piece of headband she had fashioned from an old belt and started south on the road that she was on. There was no harm in traveling if there was no immediate danger.

Along the way, she began to feel the loneliness closing in on her again. It was almost like she was suffocating, the silence crushing down on her like tidal wave after tidal wave carrying her out to sea with absolutely no promise of being rescued.

She shook off the sadness with great effort and when she finally came to a crossing road she tried once again to get her bearings in order. With another failed attempt to see where she was she began to panic just a little on the inside. It was made even more great without the reassuring, deep grumble that came from Verdos whenever she thought unpleasant thoughts and he would intrude to let her know that there was no reason for the thoughts.

_I can't do this. _Anya thought to herself, crouching down on the dirt pathway and hugging her legs. _I'm not strong enough to make it on my own like this. Like Arya was. _

The instant she thought about her twin sister Arya, she regretted it deeply. She didn't want to think about the falling out that her and her sister were going through. It was bad enough that she had just lost Verdos but now she truly felt like she had nothing left.

No doubt Oromis and Glaedr were going to be the most disappointed of everyone. More so then even Eragon and Saphira.

_Stop this thinking._ Anya reprimanded herself. _You don't know what people will do in situations until you put them in that particular situation. _

Anya continued on the path she was on and eventually came to a town that was full of the hustle and bustle of human life. She walked down the road and looked on in amazement at the way these people were going about their daily life like they had no care in the world. Weren't they worried about Galbatorix?

"Can you tell me where I am?" Anya asked a young passing boy in shorts.

"Yeah. Redmont." He said like it should've been obvious. He shook his head at her and continued on with the task that he was probably sent on in the first place.

"Where in Alegasia is Redmont?" Anya asked to no one in particular. She continued down the road she was on until she came to a draw bridge and examined the inside walls. There were posted guards on each side of the wall and as she walked past she could feel gazes upon her. No doubt that she looked unnatural in the attire that she was wearing and she began to feel uneasy once again.

"Can you tell me where I might find some lodging?" She asked one of the guards who was walking by.

"Just up the street on the left side there's an Inn there." He pointed down the road and Anya said her thanks by touching her finger tips first to her lips then her forehead. As she turned away and headed towards the place that the guard had pointed out to her the guard couldn't help but wonder where she was from. He had more important things to worry about at the current moment so he brushed it aside and continued on his way to see Baron Arald.

When Anya arrived at the Inn she bought one room for the night and decided to be out early in the morning. As she went to pay for the room, the innkeeper looked at her strangely when she handed over the gold coins, for she had never seen gold coins such as the ones that Anya had just given her but decided not ask her about them. Gold was gold, no matter what shape it came in.

"Would you be needing anything else?" The innkeeper asked her politely when they entered the room.

"No. This'll do fine." Anya answered, just as polite. The innkeeper left and immediately Anya set to putting up small barriers around the room. They were just for when she slept anyway. As soon as she was done, she sat down on the bed and tested out the feathering of the mattress.

_This'll have to do for now._ She decided and laid on her back staring at the ceiling for a minute. She closed her eyes and instantly she was in the trance that was the equality of sleep for elves. She was more tired then even she realized because of the events that had unfolded the previous day. How was she to know that she was going to be in even more trouble come the following days?


	3. Elders and Mentors

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything from Ranger's Apprentice nor Eragon.

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><p><em>Anya was standing at the edge of the mountain, surveying the scene below her with horror. She could make out 4 dragons and 6 other lonely figures that were being surrounded by the horrible undead warriors of Galbatorix. A shiny gleam caught her eye from one of the female warriors and with a sick taste in her mouth she realized that that particular warrior was her. <em>

_She immediately noticed that one of the other warriors was Eragon so the other 2 had to be Arya and Roran. The other 2, she did not recognize and as she sat there and watched she realized that more than likely this would be the end. The undead warriors came in numbers greater then she could have imagined and she guessed that there was still more around the base of the mountain. She felt like screaming in frustration. _

"_This is one of the possible futures that await you, should you return." A voice said behind Anya. She nearly jumped out her skin and turned to see an oddly familiar figure standing there, also surveying the scene with a look of disgust on his face. _

"_Do I know you?" She felt she had to ask. The more she looked at him the more she felt like she knew him from somewhere. His ears were pointed and his long black locks fell past his shoulders but his features were definitely that of an elf. To Anya's surprise, he let out a barking laugh. _

"_You should know of me." He said, looking into her eyes. "But you have never met me." More confused than ever, Anya shook her head and looked down at the bloody scene below. _

"_The orange dragon and the white dragon, can you tell me who they belong to?" She asked the stranger. _

"_I was hoping that you could tell me." He said, not taking his eyes off the battle. "You are the one in possession of their eggs." _

"_I don't even know how I stumbled upon them." She told him honestly. "After my dragon, Saphira and Thorn were born I thought those were the last eggs." _

"_In a sense, you are correct." He said. "But I found a way to save 2 other eggs." Now Anya took her eyes off the scene with great difficulty and stared at the stranger, determined to know who he was. _

"_Who exactly are you?" She demanded. _

"_That's no way to speak to an Elder." He said, like his feelings were actually hurt. _

"_An Elder?" She asked, her thoughts slowly coming together. "But, you can't be.." She began to splutter. _

"_Oh but I think I can." He stated matter-of-factly. _

"_But all the Elders are.." She didn't want to say dead because that would be contradictory to him standing there right now. So what exactly was he?_

"_It it true that my soul has left Alegasia to never return but that does not mean that I went into non-being." He explained to her. "I knew that I had to stay wandering so as to explain what has happened to the next dragon rider to stumble upon it. Hoping, of course, that it was not Galbatorix himself." Now Anya was more confused than even before._

"_So what has happened here?" She asked experimentally. _

"_Isn't it obvious?" He asked, and when she had no answer he shrugged his shoulders. "Of course not. My dear, you are in a completely different world then Alegasia." _

"_What do you mean?" Anya asked, still confused. _

"_Think of Alegasia as one flat plane." He explained, picking up 2 flat rocks. "And this," He indicated the other rock he had. "Is Araluen. They are 2 completely separate entity's that should have never been discovered by either party and yet you managed to jump from one to other without dying." _

_Anya looked at both rocks but was still having trouble comprehending. Being an elf, she wasn't about to voice her misunderstandings. _

"_So how do I get back?" She asked._

"_I'm currently still working on that detail as we speak." He said, smiling like everything was going to be o.k. "But right now, I think there is a bigger purpose here that we are overlooking. You are going to have to stay here while I figure out a solution but I have to inform you that upon your arrival here, Galbatorix was made aware of the space that is open between these worlds." _

"_And why is that a problem? Do you think he'll try to come here and conquer this world as well?" Anya asked. _

"_He may very well try but there is also something else. A prophecy was made many, many years ago while I was still a little boy and it spoke of this world. It spoke of a princess and the blood that Galbatorix needs to be ever more powerful." _

"_Wait. He needs the blood of a princess? Why doesn't he just take what he needs from our land and be done with it?" Anya was way too confused for all this. _

"_Because the prophecy spoke of a princess not from our world, she was a princess of special circumstances and purity."_

"_So the princess you think the prophecy was referring to was the one of this land?" Anya asked, slowly starting to put the puzzle pieces together. _

"_I am almost certain that it is." He told her. "It also speaks of her being protected by 2 men, son's of none. If I'm correct…" He trailed off, not wanting to tell Anya his suspicions quite yet. _

"_If your correct.. What?" Anya asked, pushing him to tell her everything that he knew. _

"_If I'm correct, it's her." He said. _

"_So what would you like me to do?"_

"_Since I am connected to this world, I knew the minute you got here. So I will tell you if someone has come to this world from ours. Until then, please protect the princess. Our world depends on her safety." Anya nodded her understanding and waited for him to snap her out of this dream. He looked at her one last time as if wanting to say something but seemed to think better of it and shook his head. Waving his hand, the scene disappeared and Anya was back in her room. _

Anya quickly jumped out of bed and looked outside to the dusk of the setting sun. She had to move quick to set her plan into motion.

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><p><em>3 days later<em>

Will sat at the table at Jenny's and absent mindedly poked at his mashed potatoes. The last couple of nights he kept on waking in the early hours of dawn covered in cold sweat and he was getting pretty irritated with the whole situation.

_Whack_

The sound seemed to resound in his head and his hands flew up to his head.

"What?" He protested loudly. Alice, Horace, Gilan, Lady Pauline and Halt all had slight smiles on their faces and Will looked around to see Jenny holding her ladle, hands on her hips and staring at him with a hard expression.

"Will Treaty, my food is not to be played with like you are 5 years old." She told him, completely straight-faced. The look of confusion on his face was just too funny and the whole table busted out laughing.

"I wasn't playing with it." Will pouted, rubbing his head where she had cracked him a good one.

"You were so preoccupied that you didn't even hear what I said." Horace said, cutting his potato in half and stuffing it in his mouth.

"I know." Will admitted. "It's just been a few sleepless nights is all."

"Well I was just saying that I'm taking the new Party of Archers to Skandia next week to relieve the old party and I was wondering if you would like to accompany me." Horace then began to stuff the other half of potato in his mouth and waited for Will to answer even though he knew that his friend was going to go along with him.

"Is it alright with you if I go with him Halt?" Halt nodded his consent but continued to watch the youth with suspicion. He knew that something was troubling Will and he wanted to know what it was.

Dinner continued without a hitch and even though Will joined in on the conversations, it was obvious that he was still troubled.

"Care to tell me what's on your mind?" Halt asked Will when it was just the 2 of them. Pauline at known that Halt had wanted to talk to Will so she discreetly made an excuse to go see the Baron and left the 2 of them to it.

"What do you mean?" Will asked, laughing.

"Well at dinner you hardly ate Jenny's food, you didn't laugh when Horace had potato on his cheek for 20 mins and when Gilan asked you about your trip last week you told him the bare minimum. Now, what's troubling you?"

"It's nothing." Will said, trying to brush off the dreams that he'd been having the last 4 days in a row.

"Alright, if you say so. I'll see you tomorrow then. Goodnight Will." Halt had said all of this in one breath and was now walking away so fast that Will couldn't help but to call out.

"Halt." His tone sounded a little hurt and Halt had to smile to himself. It was so easy to pull Will into his traps.

"Yes Will, what is it?" He turned to look at Will with that quizzical brow that he so often dawned on Will when he was an apprentice and instantly Will felt that everything was going to be o.k.

"It's these dreams I've been having." Will finally admitted and began to tell Halt in detail of his dreams.

"And you've been having the same dream for 4 days now?" Halt asked, puzzled by the events.

"Yes. And every time, it's like someone.."

"Is connected to your thoughts?" Out of nowhere came Horace. "Like they're there but yet like they aren't."

"How did you know?" Will asked, the joy of not being alone in the matter coming over him like a wave.

"Cause I've been having the same type of dreams for 4 days too." The 3 of them just stood there in silence, not knowing what to make of the current situation and Will and Horace wondering what all this could possibly mean.

"Hmm." Halt said, stroking his stubbly chin in thought. "I think I know what's going on here."

"You do?" Both boys asked in unison.

"It's obvious that the both of you are letting your imaginations run away you." He shrugged and smiled on the inside. While it wasn't a life or death situation, it was indeed a weird coincidence. But Halt knew that they both shouldn't let something so trivial trouble their young minds. It was better if he played it off like a joke and hopefully they would go back to their daily lives.

"Running away with us?" Will asked. He was beginning to believe what Halt had said and even now the dream seemed less important somehow. Horace let out a short laugh and shook his head.

"I think Halt is right." Although Horace hadn't voiced how much it worried him, he too was beginning to think it was all due to active imaginations.

"Now, if you'll boys." Halt put extra emphasize on the words boys. "Will excuse me, I have a beautiful wife I have to get back to." He waved goodbye and started walking towards his chamber where Pauline was waiting for him.

The dreams were only a coincidence and the problem was going to disappear soon, he was sure of it. The only problem with that was the dreams were just the beginning.


	4. Recruits

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything from Ranger's Apprentice nor Eragon.

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><p><strong>AN**: I am currently in the middle of reading the last and final book of Rangers =( I realized that the outcome of the book may not be the same. Just a forewarning. Hope you enjoy the next chapter.

It had taken Anya 3 weeks to get where she was at this particular moment in time and it took her another week just to find what she was looking for.

Across the room, she watched the boy that was going to be her second in command. He was tall and agile and from poking around on the surface of his thoughts Anya knew that he would always be true to his beliefs.

At this very moment, Trevor, was helping out at his family Inn. Waiting on tables and clearing them after people vacated their spots.

Anya sat in a corner and had ordered only water, which she still hadn't touched. She was only there for about 10 mins. and was only going to stay for another 5 when a stranger came in. He was wearing an assortment of gray and green clothes along with a gray green mottled cloak and brown riding boots. Anya did a quick survey of the man that came in and immediately became weary of him. Even though she could handle herself against any mortal from this land, she knew that he was a man to watch out for. He carried a long sword around his belt and 2 knives on the inside around his waist. She watched him as he took a seat near the back in the far corner and watched the people in the room. When his gaze was almost upon her, she looked down at the table so as not to draw attention to herself. He was not her objective here. She was still trying to figure out how she was going to get Trevor's attention.

She looked out of the corner of her eye at the stranger but his attention was riveted on the group of bandits that were making a loud ruckus at the center of the room. Curiously, Anya poked around in the lead bandits head and saw the opportunity that she was looking for to get Trevor's attention. It was definitely going to be tricky and it was not a subject that she was willing to breach but she needed Trevor and if this was the only way to get it then so be it. She drank her water and headed over to the lady who owned the Inn.

"May I have a room for the night?" She asked. The Innkeeper was busy but she found time to attend to Anya. She showed Anya the room that she was going to stay in that night and went straight back down stairs.

Anya wasted her time fashioning the dark blue cloth that she had bought at the market that day into a long cloak with a larger than average hood. She set about doing the 2nd one she was sure she was going to need in the near future when the sound of people coming up the stairs caught her attention. She set the cloak down and went to her door deciding that it was time to act anyway, she opened her door and headed downstairs.

On her way, she passed the Innkeeper and the stranger that had come in wearing the dark green and gray colors. Not for the first time that night, she had to wonder if he was going to play a part in her plan 2 days from now. She shook her head to herself and went downstairs to find Trevor.

To her perfect timing he was just on his way to take out the rest of the trash. Anya took a deep breath and followed him.

"Your sister would be doing this right about now if she were here." Anya said in a low voice behind him. The tall figure froze and stood rigid by the garbage cans and when he turned to Anya, the anger there was evident.

"Who are you?" He asked, all the hate coming out in those 3 words.

"Someone who wants to help you get revenge for what happened to her." Anya told him truthfully.

"How do you even know what's going on?" Trevor asked throwing down the garbage with no care at all if it spilled or not. Who did this girl think she was, thinking she could just come out of nowhere and talk about Ariabella like she had known her.

"Listen. I know that it was that crook Mark Satusburg, the lead Bandit of the group that was in here earlier." Anya told him honestly. "And I can help you bring him to justice." For one moment, Trevor's anger had dissipated. Trevor had thought that his hopes of catching that crook were gone. At the present time, he couldn't find anyone who was willing to fight alongside of him even though many people whom he had asked had been victims to this bandits stealing and killings rampage.

All the people around here were simple farm folk and no one wanted to risk their entire life's work on the hope that they could possibly bring him down. Everyone preferred to just stay out of his way.

And now here was this stranger, this girl, saying that she would help him.

"How do I know that I can trust you?" He asked wearily.

"You can't." Anya said abruptly. "But if you give me this one chance, I will show you that you can."

Trevor thought about it for a moment, not knowing what to do. For a year since his sister disappeared, he had wanted nothing more than to find her. Just recently he was beginning to think that all hope was lost for her safety.

"All I want is for him to pay for what he's done." Trevor said, watching the stranger.

"Alright." She said, spreading her hands out in front of her.

"After that, I'm coming back here." He said defiantly.

"If that is what you want, I'm not going to stop you." Anya told him. And then Trevor came to a decision.

"What do you want me to do?" He asked Anya. Anya smiled and tossed him the dark blue cloak that she had brought down with her.

"Meet me tomorrow." She told him curtly. "At 5 a.m. sharp. And don't be late."

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><p><em>2 days later<em>

Gilan waited just around the bend. He had been set on a very special case by Crowley and was now waiting for the Bandit known as Mark Satusburg. He was a well known Bandit around these parts and it was Gilan's job to stop him.

The list on the known accounts of this bandit was long and he was to be tried for his actions immediately. Absent-mindedly stroking Blaze's long neck he sat there thinking. He shook his head as his thoughts wandered to his trial, which was not a promising outlook. Blaze made a low whinny in his throat and instantly Gilan went on the defensive.

With a quick gesture for Blaze to stay where he was, Gilan took his place behind the tree that he had deemed safe enough yesterday on his scouting trip.

Listening carefully, he could hear the constant hum-drum of the horse's feet that were coming down the track. He counted to 10 and then took his place in the middle of the dirt road, leaning on his longbow.

"Stop in the name of the King." He shouted, clear and cut across the space that was left between him and the bandits. The bandits stopped and the specific one he was looking for stepped out of the carriage that one horse was pulling.

"What's the hold-up Ed?" He asked, laughing at a joke that was said inside the carriage.

"King's Ranger." Gilan called. "I carry the command from the King to obtain the one who calls himself Mark Satusburg. Come quietly and I will not use force." Gilan didn't really like to be forceful but sometimes the situation called for it and at times like that, it couldn't be helped.

"My ass I'll come quietly." The lead bandit spat, mad that his plans for transporting the drug warm-weed was being corrupted. As soon as he made it out of this sticky mess, he was going to find the traitor that sold him out and make him pay with his life. It never occurred to the bandit that he would be caught here.

"I will use the force necessary to bring you to justice." Gilan warned. Not knowing the Ranger well enough to know that he was quite dangerous when he used that tone, Mark yelled out for the rest of his crew to join him.

Gilan counted 8 in total and was sure of himself that he would have no problem taking care of them all on his own. He grabbed his slung bow and knocked an arrow to it as quick as light, the fluid motion so familiar to him and he picked off 2 of the oncoming men and wounded 2 more.

The 5th man was almost upon him and the unthinkable happened. When he went to go pull out his sword, it stuck. Without really thinking, Gilan glanced down to see what had his sword stuck in its scabbard only to see no real reason why it was stuck.

He looked back up in those few vital seconds when he had looked down and saw with a little bit of fear that the 5th bandit was upon him. The 5th bandit smiled triumphantly and made a long swing at the Kings Ranger that had caused his cousin anger.

Gilan made to duck but the long swing that the bandit was doing was going to reach him. His last thought that occurred to him was stupidity for not checking his weapons before he had gone into action but he watched that bandit coming towards him, staring deep into the black beady eyes of the man that was going to cut him down.

The next thing Gilan knew, the man was toppling out of his saddle and crashing into the stationary Gilan, dead as a door nail. After getting his breath back, Gilan loaded the guy off him and checked the body. There was one white shafted arrow sticking out of his back, the shot had been clean and precise.

He looked up to see 2 hooded figures in blue, surrounding the caravan. One was forcing Mark to the ground, bow raised and drawn to full. The other was busy tying up the rest of the bandits who seemed to surrender with no trouble at all. Gilan had no idea what was going on, but he walked over to where the 2nd figure in blue was done tying up the rest of the bandits.

"Hold it right there." A voice said. He looked to see that it was the figure that had brought Mark down to his knee's but now the archer had the drawn bow trained on Gilan and instinctively, Gilan threw up his arms in defense.

"What do you want?" The other blue clad figure asked, now done tying up the others, he had moved to his comrades side.

"It's my job to bring that man to trial." Gilan said, indicating the lead bandit on his knees.

"You can take the rest of them in." The archer said. "We'll take care of this one."

"I can't let you do that." Gilan said, not knowing what these 2 had in store. "I have my orders to follow."

"And I have promises to fulfill." Gilan noted that the archer had relaxed his stance and he was no longer at full draw, maybe just under half.

"Look." He started forward, but the archer pulled back to full draw again and Gilan stopped.

"I think that's far enough Ranger." Anya said in an octave lower then her normal voice. Lowering her bow but keeping an eye on the swift young man, she reached into her cloak and tossed Trevor the knife.

"Your sister is dead and it was him that did it. Now is the chance for you to finish what we came here to do." Anya was openly giving him an invite to do what he wanted with the man that had robbed him of his sister.

Anya was hoping that Trevor would allow the Ranger to bring him in and be tried but if he killed him right now, it wasn't more than the treacherous rat deserved. If the outcome was Trevor killed him, Anya would have to spend more valuable time looking for a 2nd in command she could trust.

Anya now had her bow trained on the Ranger once again and was watching Trevor out of the corner of her eye.

Trevor stared at the man that had took his sister, all the hate and rage boiling inside of him. He raised the knife that Anya had given him and almost plunged it straight down into the man's skull but he stopped.

"I hope you find the gallows a comfortable resting place." He nearly whispered and spit on the man. "Let's go." Holding onto the dagger, he started off in the opposite direction of his hometown.

"I hope you give him the trial he deserves." Anya said in disgust. She backed away with her bow still drawn, making sure that they weren't going to be followed. When she was far enough away, she turned around and ran after Trevor, glad that she finally found a 2nd in command.

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><p><strong>AN:** So I was originally going to have Will confront Anya but since my favorite character is the ever colorful Gilan, I figured I would give him a part to play in my story as well. Hope you like. Send any requests my way, I don't have any real set destination that this story should take yet.


	5. Planning and Approval

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything from Ranger's Apprentice nor Eragon.

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><p><strong>AN: **So I did a bit of googling and I found that John Flanagan is coming out with another book in October, but it's more of a fan filler then an actual book and that his next series is going to be a spin-off of Rangers Apprentice with Skandians.. If I'm understanding right? There's not really a synopsis of his next series but it's going to be titled 'The Outcasts.' I guess we'll see about that… I am now officially finished with the series.. I think.. Oh well.. Conclusion… My story will not be the same outcome as the books. My story is taking place right after 'Halt's Peril' in Rangers and right before the battle of Feinster in 'Brisingr.' Alright.. I think I babbled on enough. Onward to the story.

Anya had succeeded in starting a fire with a little bit of magic to help the process along. She wasn't entirely worried about Trevor noticing her use of magic, since no one from this land bore any magical abilities, because he was currently at the water's edge of the large lake that they had stopped at to camp for the night.

Anya hadn't asked him to help with setting up camp because she knew that he needed the time to recuperate from the devastating loss of his sister.

She began pitching the tent slowly and when she was finally done, the sun was setting across the lake. With the last rays of daylight about to leave them, Anya figured it was time to have a talk with Trevor.

"Hey." She said, plopping down on the rocks beside him. He didn't say anything, so she left the silence until he wanted to say something to her. She had said what was needed to say to start the conversation, now it was up to Trevor.

After about 20 mins, the silence was broken by Trevor.

"I promised myself that I was going to save her." He said, his voice breaking at the end. Anya didn't really know what to say to this. She had not known the loss of losing someone you promised to save yet. She had never made that promise to anyone.

"At least you know the traitor that.." Anya didn't say kill because the situation was still too tender for the word, "did it is going to get a fair trial."

"I was supposed to protect her." Trevor shouted, standing up. He could no longer stay still, all the hurt that he was feeling of not being able to protect her was too much for him. The grief and the regret were threatening to swallow his whole being.

He picked up a handful of rocks and threw them in the water, immediately reaching down to grab another handful to throw some more. Along with his anger and the grief, the tears were finally coming.

"I was supposed to be there for her, I promised her I would find her. I failed in my duties as a big brother." He screamed the whole sentence, grabbing larger and larger rocks all the while. Anya just sat there and watched, there was nothing that she could say or do to ease the boys suffering and she hated it. She watched as he threw a rock and then admitting defeat, he sank onto his haunches and cried.

Anya knew from poking around in his head that he was not a weak person, but ignoring the young boys tears, she stared out at the now glossy smooth water and tried to think of something she could say. She was never any good with words and it wasn't until Verdos would nudge her in the right direction, did she ever comfort anyone. Anya drew a breath to say something when Trevor stood up abruptly and wiped the tears from his face.

"Take me with you." He demanded, facing Anya with a new spirit to his sky-blue eyes.

"The road is going to be tough." She told him, smiling to herself.

"I know." He said defiantly. "But I cannot return to my parents until I find a way to right this wrong."

Anya couldn't help the swelling that was taking place in her heart for him. She knew that he was always going to stay true to his beliefs but the real problem she was going to eventually face was the courage of his heart which, as of now, she was no longer doubting. Anya got up and dusted off her pants.

"Very well." She said, with an air of confidence. "If you're going to be my 2nd in command then it's high time that you learned how to defend yourself."

"Defend myself?" Trevor asked, confused. Of course it would only be logical for Anya to start training Trevor with a sword right away. But Trevor didn't know what she was thinking.

Anya tossed him a piece of wood that she had fashioned into a nice sword with a crossed hilt. While he had been sitting by the water, she had made them and reinforced them with a small spell that would keep them intact while she taught him.

"C'mon." Anya said, taking her own wooden sword and brandishing it at him. "I have very little time to teach you what you need to know."

"How come very little time?" He asked, holding his sword up and taking a defensive stance.

"We're going to need more recruits if I am going to full fill my plan." Anya said, simply.

"What plan?" Trevor felt he had to ask.

"We're going to kidnap the princess."

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><p>King Duncan looked down at the man that was standing before him and felt nothing but disdain for him. He had been captured by Gilan and was now on trial. The counts were more than Duncan could count. Currently Duncan knew that he was a murderer, a thief, an arms smuggler, a trade seller, and last not but not least when he was caught this afternoon he had been smuggling a sufficient amount of the drug known as warm-weed.<p>

Duncan began thinking about the drug and shook his head. He did know the effects of the drug worked better for the terrains that were snow-covered 90 percent of the year because the drug made you feel like you needed the warmth that it gave but in reality, you were being robbed of your sanity.

Cassandra had told him of how young Will had been addicted to the drug and how she had almost lost all hope that he was going to be alright. He never wanted anyone to go through that and his hatred for the drug had been drawn out even more over the years as he had tried to get rid of it.

"How do you plead?" Duncan asked, his clear voice ringing out over the near empty room like a scissors cutting paper.

Mark knew that he wanted to deny all the charges that were set up against him but for some strange reason as he went to open his mouth to retaliate to the young king in front of him, different words were being spoken from his throat.

"Guilty." He said. He had no time to wonder why he had said it in the first place because King Duncan was now starting on his punishment.

"Then I, King Duncan, declare that you shall be hung by the throat until deemed dead." He then recited the counts that were proved against him.

"Wait." Mark shouted. "I can change." The prospect of death was so preposterous that he couldn't bring his mind around to the fact that he wasn't going to be able to wiggle his way out of this.

"Bring him back to the dungeons until dawn." Duncan declared. It was the last case of the day and his heart sank at the thought of the 8 people who were sentenced to death today. These were the days that he hated the most about being a ruler. Being the final judgment of someone's life, deciding who was going to live and who was going to die.

He took a second to shake off the uneasiness. This was what came with being a ruler, his job was never easy.

He took the side door out of the Great Hall and started down to the courtyard when he heard the familiar clanging of swords. It was odd to hear the steal on steal sound because the battle school students were only to use wooden swords when on the practicing grounds.

When he came to the edge of the practice grounds, he smiled to himself. Horace was in the middle of doing a duel with one his senior lieutenants. Being skilled as they both were, they were both using the swords that were specially made for them.

"C'mon Tom, surely you can do better than that." Horace goaded him into action and the older man made a wild upper-hand swing at him but Horace merely deflected it with a smile on his face.

Tom, not angry at all, was just trying to find an opening in the young man's defensive stance which was easy to say that he was nowhere close to finding that gap.

Horace, now done playing with Tom, started in swift easy movements jabbing and stabbing in an art of fluid motions and easy stepping causing Tom to lose ground and therefore Tom had no choice but to continue to back up.

There was an amount of loud cheering from the small crowd that was watching and Horace smiled, no one knew that he was still going easy on the older man. After all, he didn't want to hurt him and have to face the King's wrath later on.

Horace did another quick succession of rapid movements and at the end the older man's sword was forced from his grip and sent sailing to the left. As the Lieutenant made the mistake of watching his weapon sail out of his grip, Horace stepped in super close and held the blade diagonally down indicating that if he so chose to do so he could have severed the elder man's head and left arm clean off.

There was a significant amount of silence and then great amount of cheering took place. Horace was clapped on the back by many of the younger aspiring warriors and Tom came forward to give his regards.

"It's been a long time since I met someone so talented with a blade." He smiled, positively beaming at Horace. "You'll do great things."

"Father?" Cassandra said, coming out from the corridor that lead to the kitchens bearing a picnic basket. "What are you doing out here?"

"Oh." Duncan said, glancing at his daughter and then giving his attention back to Horace. "Just wasting time, I suppose." He smiled at Cassandra and then noted the basket in her hands and raised an inquiring eyebrow at her.

"I was just thinking I might go for a small hike." She said trying to hide her embarrassment at being found out by her dad.

"And does this hike include a certain Oakleaf Knight?" Her father smiled knowingly at her. She really couldn't hide it from him now and she sighed.

"Well of course it does." She went to stand next to her father and watch the Knight give pointers and tips to the younger boys in training.

"I'm afraid I have some bad news for you." Duncan said careful on the subject he was about to breach. "I'm going to have to start sending Horace on different traveling assignments."

"What kind of traveling assignments?" Cassandra asked.

"Ones that will take him to distant lands and back." Duncan said, watching her out the corner of his eyes.

"When are you sending him?"

"His first assignment will be in 2 months. He will be gone for 8 months."

"8 months." Cassandra said the despair evident in her voice.

"Yes." Duncan said, noting the despair. "He's going to have to get a feel for the field of high rankings if he is going to one day…" He was just about to say take his place but he knew that him and Cassandra were not yet to that point in their relationship. "If he is going to take his place among us."

"I suppose your right." Cassandra said, watching her Knight in shining armor smile and laugh along with everyone else and she couldn't help a small smile from creeping onto her face.

"Yes. So if you want him to accompany you to the visit Princess Madelydd, I suggest you ask him this afternoon." Duncan also couldn't help the smile that was now on his face.

"Thank you father." Cassandra said hugging him and kissing him on the cheek. In her own way, she knew that that was the equivalent of him giving her his blessing of being with Horace and she was now ecstatic with joy.

"Now go along and have fun with that picnic of yours. And don't come back too late." He called after her. He watched with a proud feeling in his heart at his daughters happiness that was all to obviously drawn out by this young man.

If he had wanted anyone to success him as King, it would've been Horace. He knew that the young man came from the lower tiers of society but Duncan paid no mind to that. It was not about your social standing when it came to ruling a country, it was about your commitment to your people and he had already seen numerous accounts where the boy's commitment to his friends and beliefs were beyond that of an average person.

He had no doubt that he could rest well at night knowing that he had left his Kingdom in very capable hands.

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><p><strong>AN:** So here you have the latest chapter. R&R to let me know what you think, it will be much appreciated. Until next time =)


	6. Plans Set In Motion

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything from Ranger's Apprentice nor Eragon.

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><p>Anya took a look at the group that was standing before her and she had to admit that she was pretty happy with herself right about now. There were 25 able-bodied young men all equipped and ready to go through with the plan that she had hatched.<p>

She had to admit that it was a crazy idea all-together but it had to be done. Anya watched Trevor across the small clearing and smiled to herself. He was so dependable over this last month and he had yet to let her down.

"Are you ready Trevor?" Anya asked and the clamoring died down.

"Ready when you are." Trevor said.

"Tomorrow is the big day." Anya said, addressing all the boys around her. "You have the night off but be ready to move out at dawn. If your not here, we will be going without you." There was silence that followed and with a small signal to Trevor the 2 of them climbed up on the horses that they had recently purchased.

"Are you sure this guy is reliable?" Anya asked when they were out of earshot and on their own.

"Of course I'm sure." He said, not insulted in any way. "I've checked this informant over many times already. I would stake my life on the fact that he's the best there is."

Anya didn't say anything while they rode for the rest of way. When they got to the outskirts of the village an hour later they both dismounted and donned their dark blue cloaks despite the beautiful sun bathing everything in light. Anya tied a piece of long cloth around her neck and then pulled it up over her mouth to conceal her face and just behind her Trevor was doing the same. The only thing that could be seen of their facial features was Anya's green eyes and Trevor's blue ones. They had just recently gone to covering their faces when they had recruited more men to throw some confusion into the mix.

"Ready." Trevor whispered. In spite of his cool and calm manner, his heart was pounding in his chest and his palms were actually getting sweaty but he wasn't going to let Anya know that. He was anxious about the day ahead of them tomorrow.

"Don't over think it." Anya told him, checking the straps and girths on her horse. "Just breathe and we'll take it one day a time. I have faith in you." Hearing that, Trevor's heartbeat seemed to slow down a little. He then started taking slow deliberate breaths.

"What was the name of the pub?" Anya asked.

"The Red Herring." Trevor said.

"Let's get this show on the road." Anya smiled but the action was lost to Trevor due to their faces being concealed.

They walked down the busy road of the market street, moving swiftly and smoothly between all the people who were talking and having a good day.

The Red Herring was not a place that Anya would have personally picked out herself to meet up. It was on the main street so it was probably going to be easily packed.

Anya and Trevor arrived and Trevor took the lead to go inside.

"Why did you let him pick this place?" Anya asked under her breath. The place was noisy and packed and probably the busiest place in town.

"Because he doesn't trust us and this was the only place he would come out to." Trevor said but the fact that the 2 of them had their faces concealed was causing problems. People were beginning to stare at them and Anya didn't like all the attention.

"You're sure that he has the maps?" Anya asked with an edge to her voice. All the attention was really starting to get to her.

"Yes." Trevor said. "When I met him a week ago he let me examine them but he wouldn't let me have them without the money first. I'm positive he has them. There he is." Anya followed a step behind Trevor and when they sat down the Bandit smiled at them.

"Hello to you too Arnie." Trevor said, taking a seat across from the known bandit.

"You could have at least worn something suitable." He growled, staring at Anya wondering what was concealed under the dark blue cloak.

"And you could have just handed over what we require without any trouble." Anya said in a low voice, finally making eye contact with him. She already didn't trust the bandit but it was obvious that he was the right person to see about the maps.

"I don't trust the likes of you." He pretty much spat but instead of keeping eye contact with Anya, he turned his attention to Trevor.

"No matter." Trevor said brushing it off like it was nothing. "Do you have what we require? We're not going to linger more than what is necessary." Anya couldn't help but to smile under her mask. There was a reason Trevor was 2nd in command. She knew that he was going to be able to think fast on his feet in a quick pinch and he wasn't going to let fear get the better of his judgments. She had heard the fear in his voice and had felt the apprehension coming from his person but that wasn't going to stop him from making the right choices when it came down the battle time.

Arnie pulled out the charts and slid them across the table. Anya checked them over real quick and doubled checked him to make sure that these were the real deal. Once she was satisfied she nodded to Trevor and he began rolling them up.

"A word of advice to the foolish." Arnie whispered. "If you still intend to go through with your plan, watch out for the one they call the Oakleaf Knight. They say that he is in the company of the Princess 90% of the time and only a fool would approach him in open combat."

"Your concern is duly noted." Trevor said, stashing the maps on the inside of his pockets.

"There is also the concern of the infamous Will Treaty. He once saved the Princess some years ago when they were ship bound to Skandia. Led off an invasion there from the Eastern Sea Riders too if I'm not mistaken and I assure you this, you take the Princess and Will Treaty and the Oakleaf Knight will not be far behind you and you don't want them on your tail cause even though he is a Ranger, he has the full backing of King Duncan himself."

"We should get out of here." Trevor said.

"You're right." Anya said looking at Arnie now. She did a quick and silent spell as Trevor got up that Arnie wouldn't remember them when they left or what he had sold to them.

"It was nice doing business with you." Anya said curtly and left, Trevor a few strides behind her. They made their way to where they had tied up their horses and mounted without so much as saying anything to each other. The rode quickly and swiftly until they were clear of the town and Anya was positive that no one was following them.

"Nice job." Anya said. "Tomorrow we put out plans into action."

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><p>"We'll stop here for a break." Horace called out, pulling on Kickers reigns. He jumped down and began walking to the carriage that was carrying Princess Cassandra.<p>

"Set up a quick fire over there in that clearing." He advised Stephan. "Me and Tim will set up the security details as soon at the Princess is comfortable." The young knights began to set up camp as Horace opened the door the carriage and Cassandra stepped out.

"Hmm." She smiled. "I love that forest smell."

"I know." Horace smiled at the silly look on her face. "You said the same thing yesterday."

"And I'll say it again tomorrow so make sure that we stop in a foresty area." She smiled and went to go and help set up camp. She wasn't normally one to sit around and let others do all the work for her. She may have been that way some years ago but her past experiences have led her to do her share and not expect all the others to do it for her.

"We're all set up." Horace announced after an hour seeing to all the details. "I'll take the first watch and we'll switch every 4 at the top." He began putting his things further away from the fire and then went to his post.

He was probably at his post for an hour when Cassandra came with a jug of water.

"Thirsty?" She asked offering him the canteen.

"Thank you." He smiled at her and when he saw the sad expression on her face he had a faint idea of what is what about. "It's not like I want to go but I have to."

"I know." Cassandra sighed. "But its just… It's such a long time for you to be gone. I'm going to miss you." At the end of those words, she felt herself blush rather deeply and found that she had to look away.

"And I'll miss you too but this simply has to be done." He took a long drink from the canteen and found himself looking away. He wanted so much to tell her that he would think about her everyday that he was gone but didn't want to sound foolish. How was he to know that she was thinking the same exact thing?

"I better get back." Cassandra said in small voice. "I shouldn't distract you while your watching out for my safety."

"Yeah." He said, sad that she wasn't going to keep him company a little bit longer. Tomorrow he would tell her. Tomorrow for sure.

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><p><strong>AN:** I know that this chapter is little shorter then the others but hopefully the next chapter will be action-packed to make up for it. Hope you enjoy =)


	7. Ambush

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything from Ranger's Apprentice nor Eragon.

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><p>At dawn Anya was still up going over the final plans for the preparations for the kidnapping sight of the princess. She was pouring over every last detail and wasn't surprised by the sound of a cough at the entrance to her tent.<p>

"You don't have to cough to let me know your there Trevor, I heard you when you left your tent 10 mins ago." Trevor pushed open the flap to Anya's tent and entered.

"Don't you ever sleep?" Trevor asked, ignoring the jab about hearing him.

"Nope." Anya replied. Even if it was the truth there was no way that he was going to believe her.

"I was thinking.." Trevor started and stopped quickly when Anya stopped what she was doing to look at him. "Well, I was just thinking, why can't Jeremy take my position tomorrow?"

"Because that's the spot that I need you to be at." Anya said, going back to the maps. "If I wanted Jeremy there, I would've put him there and not you."

"But I don't understand why I'm not…" Trevor stopped once again as Anya's green eyes bore into his. "I don't understand why I'm not stationed closer to you." He finally got out, the skin on his face burning hot.

"Putting you in that spot has nothing to do with being close to me." Anya said carefully. "I need you in that spot because you are the only that I can trust if things start to go wrong. That's the most vital spot and I will only trust you there." Anya did a couple of more measurements and put one more dot on the map. "Is there anything else you wanted to clarify?" Anya asked.

"No." Trevor said, staring at her.

"Good." Anya smiled mischievously. "Cause it's time. Go and wake everyone, we leave in a half hour." And with his orders, Trevor left Anya's tent.

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><p>Horace scanned the tree line on either side of him. He had a bad feeling in the bottom of his stomach and he couldn't explain what was causing it.<p>

"Here comes the front guard." One of the senior leaders called to the left of Horace. The procession continued down the path and soon they were joined by 2 other riders.

"All's well for 2 miles forward." Owen said to Horace. Horace wasn't actually the leader of the group but it went without saying that everything went through him first.

"Good." Horace said, glancing up at the sun. "We'll ride for another hour and then start scouting a place for lunch." The 3 men nodded and they fell back into rank, Owen sending 2 more of the guard ahead for another scout.

Horace let his eyes wander to the trees around them and the uneasy feeling came back again.

"Now that looks like trouble." Immediately Horace's attention went to anything ahead of them that was, in any way, out of the ordinary. "I meant that look on your face." Owen said, laughing and riding alongside him.

"Oh." Horace said, trying to save himself from any further jibes. "I was just thinking… About what lies ahead."

"For you and the Princess?" Asked Owen, it was no secret that Horace and the Princess were just dancing around each other but it was a matter of who was going to make the first move. A majority of the votes were placed on the Princess but Owen had put his good faith in Horace and now saw no reason why he shouldn't help his investment along. He genuinely liked Horace and saw no reason why he and the Princess shouldn't be happy together.

"No." Horace said seriously, he was now staring at the trees so hard that even Owen tried to calm his nerves and his senses went on high alert. He was looking for something, anything out of the ordinary and that's when the first arrow seemed to come out of nowhere.

Owen wasn't even aware of the searing hot pain that exploded in his right arm. As he stared at Horace, he saw the look of horror on his face for a split second and then Horace shouted something and Owen wondered why he never heard what he shouted. He was aware that his world was slowly starting to slant and even when he hit the ground with a loud thud, he was not aware that he had just been shot by that particular arrow.

Horace had rolled his round buckler over his shoulder in a matter of seconds and held up his arm. There were simultaneous thuds on his shield as the rain of 5 arrows bounced harmlessly off. As he watched, his other men were not so lucky. 4 of them had gone down and lay motionless but 3 others had seemed to dodge the rain and began to run for cover on the other side of the carriage but that was a mistake as more arrows came raining down from above on the other side as well.

"Protect the Princess." Horace shouted and wheeled Kicker around, trying to get close to Cassandra. There was a little more fire from the hidden archers but now 10 men in long dark blue cloaks were coming out of the forest and were engaging his men in battle. Horace was the only one who had managed to stay on his horse and now there were only 5 of his men left to defend Cassandra. 2 of the blue-coated figures were making their way to the carriage and Horace had no way of making it there in time.

Horace jumped off Kicker and was running towards the carriage when he noticed Chayse was engaged in a close sword battle with someone very good. He didn't realize that he had actually stopped running, wanting to help his friend when the blue-coated fighter got the upper hand because Chayse had backed up into one of the wounded soldiers and stumbled.

The blue-cloaked soldier had victory shining in his eyes when he began the swing downwards and Horace let out a terrified shout but at the last possible second the swordsmen changed his swing and hit Chayse with the flat of his sword and Chayse crumpled from the hit.

For a split second, Horace wondered why the fighter had not just cut down his friend in cold blood. He was glad of course, but he couldn't figure it out. If they were not looking to kill then there was only one thing that they were after and with that last thought he made a mad dash for the carriage.

20 ft from the carriage, Horace thought he was home clear until he felt something wrap around his ankles and he tripped skidding across the dirt and rolling to stop.

Hands still holding onto his sword he jumped up and faced his attacker. There was no way he could tell anyone of these people apart with them all wearing blue and covering their faces the same way. He silently cursed them all and tried to watch the carriage out of the corner of his eyes while also trying to keep his attention on the blue clad figure in front of him.

His full attention was pulled away from his attacker though as soon as 3 blue-cloaked people had reached the carriage and forced the door open. He watched helpless for a moment while one of them checked inside, his heart in his throat at the thought of them 3 dragging her out of the carriage.

No sooner had one of them looked inside, had he jerked his head back out again holding onto the cloth that was covering his face. He ripped the cloth off and Horace saw crimson red blood pouring down the man's face. He watched for a minute too long as Cassandra had hopped out of the carriage and was now brandishing her saber at the 2 remaining men when he felt a searing pain in his left arm.

He jerked away and raised his right arm that was still holding the sword and was able to deflect the next oncoming hit. He saw surprise in the offenders eyes at his snake-like reflexes and smiled as he went into a series of attacks that only took him a minute to overcome his opponent.

He disarmed the attacker and hit him in the head with the butt of his pommel to knock him out. He was really not one for cold blooded murder. His only priority was to see that the princess was safe. He looked up in time to see Cassandra cut down 1 of the 2 remaining men and smiled to himself. _Maybe she will be alright after all_ he thought to himself, and clutching the wound in his left arm he went to go help with the fight.

On the other side of the clearing, Anya had just put 2 more of the guard to sleep when she saw Jason get punched in the nose by the Princess. She almost laughed out loud but stopped herself when he ripped off the cloth that was covering his face. She shook her head but couldn't really find it in her heart to get mad at him. She started to make her way over to the 3 of them stopping down to heal one guard that had been badly wounded.

"Why don't you just leave me here to die?" The young guard asked groggily, probably tired from the loss of blood.

"Because we did not come here to kill you." She said as calmly and nicely as she could muster.

"The Princess doesn't deserve to be kidnapped." He said, wincing in pain as she closed the wound over his main artery.

"I'm doing this to protect her." Anya said, putting him to sleep. He would live. She looked up just in time to see the princess slice down Trevor with the saber that she carried and Anya felt like someone had literally grabbed her heart and was squeezing it tightly.

Without thinking, she used her elfish speed to sprint across the field and caught Trevor before he hit the ground. He removed the cloth that was covering his face and Anya felt her stomach drop at how pale he was already.

"I'm sorry." He stuttered, his hands aimlessly going to his large wound. "You said not to harm her." Anya held up a hand, her gedwey ingasia lighting up slightly, and aimed at the Princess thinking _Slytha_. There was a slight dull to the princess' eyes and then she fell like a sack of potatoes to the ground.

"Get her out of here." Anya ordered Matt, who was closest to them. Without needing to be told twice, Matt gathered the Princess in his arms and started off in the direction where the first reign of arrows had come from. Just beyond the tree line, all their horses were tethered and ready to go.

"Cassandra!" Anya heard a mortified scream from the other side of the clearing. She ripped the rest of Trevor's front open and started healing him before he had lost too much blood. The Princess had gotten him good and if Anya had not been here, he probably would've died.

"You're going to be alright." She told Trevor just before she cast the sleeping spell on him as well. He needed to sleep to slow down his heart rate. Anya heard the thundering footsteps behind her and quickly pulled her sword from its scabbard and instantly the sound of steel on steel hissed through the almost silent, bloody ambush sight.

They stood there, blades crisscrossed above their heads for a few seconds before Anya used her muscles to push him away and did a twirling motion to get right back into the defensive position. There were a few of her men standing around now, watching the scene unfold.

"Steven." Anya said, not taking her eyes off of Horace. "Take Trevor and get out of here. Take the wounded back to the meeting place and set up camp. I'll meet you there."

Anya watched the eyes of the young warrior before her and realized how much pain he was in that he had failed to protect the princess. Around her, her comrades started getting their wounded out of there. Horace stared at her nonetheless and glared like he would like nothing more than to cut her down where she stood, which is exactly what he wanted to do.

Anya was waiting for him to make his first move so that she could close the distance between them and cast the sleeping charm on him easily. She was expecting him to be clumsy and fumble footed like most mortal men were but how was she to know that this one was different?

He came crashing at her with everything he had left him. While he went through a series of thrusts and backhanded jibes she had to marvel at his speed and swiftness. He was still a long ways from her level and she found herself thinking that he would be a great help to her purpose.

She let him work up a sweat and tire himself out before she closed the gap between them and placed a hand on his chest and cast the sleeping spell. She saw the angry look fade away and right before he crashed to the ground, she cushioned him so he didn't hit so hard.

She quickly moved him to the carriage and made sure the wound in his left arm wasn't too deep or life threatening. She set to quickly making sure that the rest of the guard was ok and when she was satisfied that there were no fatalities, she moved the rest of the guard by the carriage and cast a sleeping spell that would dissipate as soon as she was far enough away from them that they wouldn't be able to track her.

She stole one last glance at the tall soldier that she had engaged in with battle at the end. She couldn't shake the feeling that she was going to see him again very soon. Shaking her head and discarding the thoughts from her mind, she ran into the woods and made for the checkpoint. Her only thoughts now were that Trevor had to be ok.

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><p><strong>AN:** Latest Chapter =) Hope you like and don't forget to review.


	8. Telling the Truth

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything from Ranger's Apprentice nor Eragon.

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><p>Horace had ridden the 3 day journey in a little under 2 and when he got to the Fief of Redmont he wasted no time in riding Kicker full force to the cabin by the edge of the woods and jumping off before the big battle horse could even come to a stop. He ignored his screaming muscles and ran up the stairs, screaming as he went.<p>

"Will." He shouted, pounding on the light-weight door with his strong arms. "Will, Help me." He went to reach for the door handle when there was no answer but the door was already flying open and the looks of anxiety and confusion were written on Will's face. His brown eyes flooded with fear as soon as he saw the condition in which his best friend was in.

"What happened?" Will asked his friend, waging war with his mind to stay calm but also wanting to freak out as much his friend was at this very moment.

"Cassandra-Evanlyn- there- was-an-ambush-blue-capes-couldn't-see-any-faces." Horace was making no sense at all and that scared Will more than anything. His friend always knew how to keep his cool.

"Slow down." He forced Horace to look into his eyes and forced him to sit down on the edge of the chair. "Take a breath, I need to know what happened." Horace stared into Will's brown ones for a second or two and found the strength to take a deep breath.

"Cassandra was taken. We were ambushed and I was useless." Now fresh tears were forming in his eyes and the burden now weighed down on Will's shoulders as well.

"Where have you gone so far?" Will asked, starting to pace.

"I sent Owen to the King and I came straight here." Horace said. "Will, I don't know what to do."

"C'mon." Will said, helping Horace to his feet. "Halt will know what to do."

They both ran to the castle as fast as their legs would carry them and found Halt, Pauline, Alyss and Gillan all talking in the great Hall. It had been a complete coincidence that Gillan just happened to be here on this day to hear about the blue-caped people that he had encountered some weeks prior.

"Halt." Will yelled as soon as he saw his mentor, the weight seemed to grow heavier and Will almost thought he was going to suffocate if he didn't say anything right away.

"What is it?" Halt asked, his heart dropping as soon as he saw the state in which Horace was in and the paleness of Will.

"Cassandra was ambushed and taken." Will said, choking on the words as they left his mouth. "We have to go now and track her down."

It took Halt almost 2 minutes to digest what he had just heard.

"What happened?" He asked Horace and with the eyes of Halt, Pauline, Will, Alyss and Gillan all on him, he was crushed under the weight and sank onto the bench and almost cried.

"I couldn't save her." He whispered, taking his time to recount the events of what had happened to him.

"Blue capes you say?" Gillan asked, that day coming back to the front of mind.

"What do you know about these people Gil?" Halt asked. He then recounted his own story about the 2 that he had seen a little over a month ago.

"I didn't think anything of it at the moment." Gillan had admitted. "I thought they were just trying to hide their identities because they were only after Mark." Gillan had his head hung low and Halt felt like he needed a small pick me up.

"It's alright Gil." Halt told him, patting him on the shoulder. "You made a note of it in your reports. None of us picked up on that. They flew under the radar." He looked at each of the people in the room and tried to think.

"What are we going to do?" Horace asked, the despair evident in his voice and it was that despair that led Halt to make some quick decisions.

"Alright, this is what we're going to do. Pauline and Alyss will go the King and wait for me there. I'll send letters to let you know what we're doing as things come up. Gil, Horace and Will, you 3 go to the ambush sight and see if you can track these people down. I'm going to head to see Crowley and see if he has any information on them. I want to make sure that this is not something out of our control." Pauline and Alyss nodded, as did Will, Gillan and Horace.

"Will," he said as he started walking to the door. Will instantly fell into synchronized steps with Halt and listened to what he was about to say. "Whatever you do, do not engage them until we know what it is their about. If they are going to make a ransom for the princess I'm sure they're going to make it soon, that's why I'm sending Alyss and Pauline to the King. They'll know what to do if the ransom letter comes. If they are not going to ransom her then we have a whole new problem ahead of us. I want to know as much as we can before we engage them in any sort of confrontation but most of all, do not underestimate them." At the last sentence he turned to look Will in the eyes to get the importance of it across to his former apprentice.

"I'll let you know as soon as I'm on my way to join you 3 so try not to do anything stupid while I'm away and for god's sake keep Horace from charging whatever fortress they're at. Lord knows you 2 like to storm castles with less men then you can afford." There was a ghost of a smile on his lips as he peaked at Will out of the corner of his eyes.

"Where are them Skandians when you need them?" Will asked, heading out the big double doors down to his cabin to pack. Even though he had joked with Halt, he still couldn't shake the feeling that something bigger was going on behind the scenes and he didn't like that feeling one bit.

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><p>Anya reached the camp about an hour after the other riders had settled down and in for the day. She rode to the tent that she knew held Trevor and the other wounded of the ambush and entered the large tent.<p>

"How's Trevor?" She asked Brock.

"He's going to live." He told her. He was carrying a hot bowl of water filled with rags to disinfect some more minor wounds on some of the other men so he excused himself quickly. Anya found where Trevor was and woke him from his sleep.

"How are you?" She asked, smiling at him.

"Fine." He seemed confused for a moment. "I thought I was going to die." He admitted.

"Good thing for me you didn't, otherwise I would need to find a new 2nd in command." She joked. He laid there for a moment, trying to think about the dream that was slowly fading from his memory. It was a great dream really, he was at a coronation and he was being crowned King. He had felt such joy in his heart that he had wanted to cry. His mother and father were there for him, smiling in the crowd along with his sister but his sister was not standing next to their parents, she was standing in the dark corner with a sad smile on her face and Trevor began to cry.

The scene changed and he was running through a field chasing a young boy about 5 years old and a little girl who seemed to be no older than 2 or 3. He knew that this was his son and daughter and he was never going to let any harm come to them.

The scene changed yet again when his son was being crowned King and he and his wife stood by and proudly watched. He was the luckiest guy in the world.

"Trevor." Anya asked and he brought his attention back to the present, forgetting the dream completely.

"What was that?" He noticed that Brock was now sitting next to Anya and the both of them were looking at him. He chuckled and felt himself turn a little red.

"I'm sorry. My mind was elsewhere."

"I can see that." Anya laughed along with him. "Brock was just telling you that you were going to live and that you could probably start traveling tomorrow."

"Good." He said sitting up. "And the Princess?"

"I'm going to wake her and talk with her in a minute. While she is in our company, she is still to be treated with her status as Princess." Anya told Trevor seriously. "I'm going to protect her with my life but I don't expect you to do the same. The road that we are about to travel is going to get even more dangerous and if you choose to stay with me then I want you to know my story. Please don't tell me your decision until after you have heard and seen what I can do. If you choose not to stay, then I will understand." Trevor looked at Anya for a long moment and wondered what it was she was hiding from him.

"Come." Anya said, clearing her throat. "Let's go wake the Princess." She helped Trevor to his feet and they walked slowly to the oversize tent that held the sleeping Princess. They entered and Trevor sat down in a chair in the corner.

Anya leaned down next to the Princess and whispered the awakening words softly into her ear. At first nothing seemed to happen but a second later her eyes fluttered opened and took in her surroundings. She sat up straight in her bed and took in the sight of Anya and Trevor. She sat on the edge of the bed, straight-backed and stony faced. They sat there in silence for a few minutes, Anya trying to pick her words out carefully in advance.

"You have to understand that I kidnapped you to protect you." Anya said, finally deciding to just cut right to the chase. It was easier this way and less confusing.

"I think that your idea of protection might be a little deluded." Cassandra said with venom in her voice. Her mind was on overload and she was trying to think as quickly as she could to find a way out of her current situation. She was still very confused on why she had fallen asleep in the first place, it's not like she had been overly exhausted by anything.

"You must understand the position that I am in Princess. Your well-being is at the top of my list right now and I intend to protect you with my life."

"My father will find me and when he does, you will rot in jail for the rest of your life." Cassandra said darkly. Anya only laughed.

"If your father can find me before my King does then it might as well be the end of us both." Cassandra felt her face heat with anger at Anya's laughter and mocking tone.

"I wouldn't underestimate the people who have dedicated their lives to protect me." Cassandra said, staring hard at the person in front of her and trying to make her understand just how much she hated them both.

"There is something that you must understand about me." Anya said carefully. "I am not from your world so therefore the rules here do not apply to me the same way they do to you. I have come here to protect you and through protecting you I am saving my own world from certain doom." Anya continued to stare at Cassandra and watched her face for any emotions showing that she was taking in what she had heard.

"What do you mean, not from this world?" Cassandra finally found the courage to ask. All thoughts of escaping fled from her mind as she tried to find the meaning in everything that was happening around her.

Without answering her question, Anya took off the headband that had covered her ears since the day that she got here. She heard the sharp intake of breath from both the princess and Trevor as they both took in the pointed ear tips.

"I come from a world far different from yours." Anya told the Princess. "In my land, many different races roam free of the land and there is a great war of power upon us. I am what you would call an Elf. There are a score of other races among my own that are fighting the King who has been ruling the land of Alagaesia with fear for far too long. I was on the brink of taking out one of his top men when I was brought here and from my limited knowledge of what has happened I believe I was sent here to protect you."

"But why me?" Asked Cassandra, still thoroughly confused. "I don't understand why I even have a part to play in a war that doesn't concern this world."

"I think that that will become clear very soon." Anya said thinking about the 2 dragon eggs in her tent. She was still hoping that the eggs wouldn't hatch here. They hadn't yet but Anya was still against having anyone touch them but her and she still hadn't let anyone else know they were even here.

"So where do we go from here?" Trevor asked.

"As soon as you are well enough, we travel to find a definite place to call our headquarters. Until then I will be watching your every move Princess." Anya did a quick bow and left the tent, leaving Cassandra and Trevor in the tent alone.

_Not if I can escape first. _Cassandra thought to herself, her mind going back to a plan to escape.


End file.
